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If you asked my Dad what kind of pie he wanted, he would say “gooseberry” or if we ask him what kind of ice cream he would like, he would say “gooseberry.” My Mother’s recipe for gooseberry pie follows.

“Waking up in summertime to the smell of homemade biscuits and sizzling bacon is the best kind of alarm clock. And if those biscuits are slathered with a generous amount of homemade strawberry-rhubarb jam, it’s even better. After a full southern breakfast, a kayak trip down the waterway through the marshlands is my idea of a perfect summer day. My desire to stretch the deliciousness of summer into the fall and winter months ahead is always on my mind. One way to stretch the season is with this jam of beautiful sun-ripened berries.

So brilliant are the images on the pages of Pat’s Branning’s extraordinarily crafted “Magnolias, Porches & Sweet Tea: Recipes, Stories & Art from the Lowcountry,” that it’s often difficult to distinguish those that are actually photographs taken by son, Andrew Branning, a gifted photographer in his own right, from the ones created by the hand of an artist.

ALEXANDRIA, Va— Becky Domokos-Bays of Alexandria City Public Schools has served her students whole-grain pasta 20 times. Each time, she said, they rejected it.

Starting next school year, pasta and other grain products in schools will have to be whole-grain rich, or more than half whole grain. That includes rolls, biscuits, pizza crust, tortillas and even grits.

Come this time of the year, many seafood lovers want to know how to best to handle in-season soft-shell crabs. Pricey – and a delicacy – soft-shell crabs should be alive when you purchase them, so look for the liveliest ones at the market. You can ask the folks at the market to dress (clean) the crabs for you, or you may clean them yourself, but for a sweet, fresh-from-the sea flavor, be sure to clean live soft-shell crabs just before you are ready to cook them.